The handling of computer printout sheets has led to the development of many pieces of relatively sophisticated equipment including separators, collators, bursters, trimmers and the like. Normally, printers associated with computers employ very long ribbons of paper perforated or otherwise laterally marked to denominate successive connected sheets in multiple layers with carbon paper between the layers. The foregoing paper has uniformly spaced perforations along one or both edges for indexing the paper as it is moved through a printer. In addition, various means are employed to join the multiple layers of the elongated ribbon of sheets together. Such means include what are commonly termed "disappearing glue" or "finger locks". Attachment means, such as the foreoging, are required to hold the layers together during printing and processing; however, the separation of one layer from the others requires means for "breaking" this connection of layers.
After printing of data upon the multiple layers of "computer paper" or "printout paper" it is normally required that successive layers be individually separated and intervening carbon paper be discarded in order that successive sheets of each layer may be variously employed as, for example, as billing sheets, inventory records or the like, and other layers may, for example, be folded and bound as permanent records of computed and printed information.
Breaking of adhesive connections between layers of computer printouts is not difficult. Refolding of separated layers has, however, proven more difficult, and normally it is necessary for separator devices to provide a long "fall" or vertical passage of separated layers in order to insure refolding and orderly return of unseparated and separated sheets into folded condition for future handling. This refolding of successive sheets of a ribbon of sheets wherein one ribbon, for example, is separated from the remainder of connected ribbons, poses particular problems that have only been solved in the prior art by the provision of a long "fall" or vertical traverse of sheets down to a refolding platform whereat a transverse or lateral bar is provided for the purpose of "breaking" each sheet to fold or bend same laterally across the center thereof.
The foregoing refolding operation may seem to be very simple to those that are uninitiated in the problems of rapidly moving sheets of paper; however, serious studies of the movement of a ribbon of paper in the air has established at least the unpredictability of the ultimate disposition thereof. It has been determined that the weight of falling paper onto a refolding platform is normally of major importance in forcing or producing refolding of the successive sheets of a ribbon of computer paper. Consequently, prior art separators of one layer of conventional computer paper from a plurality of layers thereof require a vertical distance of the order of three feet or more for the separated layers to be refolded as required for subsequent handling of such sheets. Because of this limitation, separators of this type must be quite large.
The present invention provides a simple, but very advantageous solution to the problems encountered by the prior art as set forth in part above.